Finding NOLA Project's newest outdoor theater space can be a little tricky. The former vehicle inspection station just off the Lafitte Greenway in Mid-City is a mix of concrete, steel and earth-toned brick. It's an unlikely setting for the company's adaptation of Shakespeare's lush island fairy tale “The Tempest,” but with a little stage magic and the audience's imagination, the imaginative cast and crew create a story of reconciliation and forgiveness. It is an attractive rendition of the hymn of a minstrel who seeks.
The play, adapted and directed by company member James Bartel, is billed as “Shakespeare's Tempest, Reconsidered.'' While the title may suggest a reimagining of the classic, the adaptation adheres fairly closely to the original, running a tight 90 minutes through the play's intertwined plotline. Shakespeare's text is partially supplemented by Bartel's own pen, but the meter and style are imitated so effectively that most ears can't tell where one author ends and the other. I can barely tell when it starts.
The biggest success of this show is the direction. Shakespeare's enchanting paradise island is brought to life by a vibrant and energetic ensemble, animated with original music, vibrant choreography and expressive costumes.
Monica R. Harris, who plays the exiled aristocrat and spellcaster Prospero, is a master of both the stage and the script. As the powerful center of Shakespeare's Storm, a vengeful outcast wields supernatural authority over the island's fairies, beasts, and a group of recently arrived shipwreck survivors, including This includes the political enemies who exiled Prospero and his daughter Miranda years earlier.
This shipwreck sets in motion the play's three complex subplots. Prospero's arranged marriage between Miranda and the king's son Ferdinand. The planned overthrow of the disillusioned king by Prospero's brother Antonio and his co-conspirator Sebastian. There's also a comical portrayal of Trinculo and Lyanna, two clumsy drunks who devise their own siege with the help of the island monster Caliban. Caliban is trying to break the harsh bonds of servitude to his master, Prospero.
The shortened screenplay means the plot plays out predictably by the numbers and is exposition-heavy, but the shortened running time moves the play inexorably toward a neatly resolved ending. It allows for a brisk pace of forward movement.
The cast is uniformly impressive, including a sublime performance from Leslie Claveley as the island spirit Ariel, whose lilting voice captivates and captivates in both song and speech. Keith's Claverie, dressed as Caliban, a native beast, expertly dons horns and animal fur, listens and roars in fierce conquest. And Ashley Record Santos and Kristin Witt, playing the ill-fated wine-drinking duo Trinculo and Liana, imbue the political intrigue of the play's central storyline with a much-welcomed giddy silliness.
Behind the scenes, choreographer Monica Ordonez and composers Alexis Marceau and Stephen McDonald contribute to the production's light-hearted charm, as do lighting and costume designers Joanne Long and Megan Harms.
Given the lively, seaside, idyllic nature of the setting, the bleak industrial venue was a drawback to overcome, and the NOLA project's past work under the night sky in the New Orleans Museum of Art's Besthof Sculpture Garden This is in contrast to the more eccentric works. But the company is meeting that challenge head-on, offering audiences a concise and straightforward reenactment of “The Tempest'' enlivened by a talented troupe of theater artists who effectively harness the power of Shakespeare's storm.
“Tempest”
when: Until May 25th
where: 436 N. Norman C. Francis Parkway
ticket: $38 (upgrades and student discounts available)
information: nolaproject.com